The Minister of Public Health, Dr Manaouda Malachie, has warned Cameroonians against using the locally-made rub, Baume Francios, stating that the popular cold medicine is dangerous.
Dr Manaouda presented the argument in Parliament recently while he explained a bill to regulate traditional medicine in Cameroon.
He said the government has tested samples of Baume Francios and found out that it contains toxic chemicals that are dangerous to health.
Speaking to journalists after presenting the bill in Parliament recently, Dr Malachie said: “I have given statistics and feedback about Baume Francios… Although we are facing a lot of challenges, the government is ensuring that this product is out of the market.”
Manufacturers and distributors of Baume Francios claim the rub is effective for common cold, back and waist pain, headache, muscle pain, toothache, rheumatism, and skin irritations.
Since 2022, vendors have circulated the rub across the country, selling it in markets and on the streets.
“We have summoned its management and have taken some samples to the laboratory and the result shows Bome Francios is dangerous to the population. It is dangerous because it has an overdose of toxic chemicals. So we are saying that Bome Francios is dangerous for the population,” Dr Malachie said.
While the government opposes the distribution of Baume Francios, persons who have used it say it is very effective in combatting common cold, and other illnesses.
Some see the government’s ban on the rub as an attempt to limit competition in the medicine sector.
Before the government’s decisive action against Baume Francios, the association of pharmacists in Cameroon banned the distribution of the rub in any pharmacy in the country.
Baume Francios has found its main market among mobile vendors on the streets.
